The Dancer
by EcrivaineA
Summary: Kenshin and his group meet an injured dancer named Tokiaki at a festival and offer her a place to stay at the Kamiya dojo.


"Kenshin! Hurry up or you're going to make us late to the festival!" Kaoru's shriek could be heard from end-to-end of the dojo property.

"My apologies, Miss Kaoru! I was just trying to finish up the laundry, that I was." Kenshin appeared around the corner of the dojo.

"Whatever, Kenshin. Let's go!" Yahiko urged and started walking towards the village.

The group - Megumi, Kaoru, Sano, Kenshin and Yahiko - travelled to the nearby village to partake in a local festival.

"What exactly is this festival celebrating?" Yahiko asked.

Kaoru was the first to answer, "It's a celebration of the first complete decade of the Meiji Era."

Music could be heard as the group approached the edge of he festival. The scent of fresh foods wafted through the air towards them. There were fire-jugglers, games, food stalls, vendors and musicians. Yahiko and Sano scurried off towards the foods and games while the other three walked between the various stalls.

"If you two don't mind, I'd like to spend a little time looking at the makeup this man is selling." Megumi stopped herself in front of a stall that had several different powders and creams in many colors, "_Some_ of us actually care to take the time to look good." She shot a glance and a snicker at Kaoru.

"Why, I oughta-" Kaoru started towards Megumi but Kenshin grabbed her arm.

"I believe that Miss Megumi was only joking, Miss Kaoru. I think that if she wants to look at this then she should enjoy herself." Kenshin turned to Megumi, "Just remember to meet up with use at the closing show. Sano and Yahiko will meet us there, too."

"How about we grab something delicious to eat?!" Kaoru dragged Kenshin to a nearby food stall, "Look at all of this great food! I want to try some of all of it!"

Kaoru and Kenshin sat down in front of the stall and snacked away at the delicacies the cook provided.

Kaoru's head rested on Kenshin's shoulder. _She must have fallen asleep after eating so much food, that she must, _Kenshin thought, _It looks like it's getting dark. That means the closing show wil probably be starting soon._

He shook his shoulder a little bit. "Miss Kaoru, you have to wake up, the closing show will be starting soon and we should also find Sano and the others."

"Mmmm...?" Kaoru rubbed her eyes and looked around, "Yeah, I guess that we should. I remember passing the stage when we came in."

The pair rose to their feet when they heard shouting off in the distance. "Kenshin! Kenshin!" They turned to see Sano and Yahiko jogging towards them with their arms filled with prizes that they had won at the games.

"Good timing, you two. Now all we have to do is find Miss Megumi and we can all watch the closing show together!"

Megumi had been standing at the edge of the crowd in front of the stage, fixated on the Taiko drummers and the flame jugglers who were currently occupying a stage. She turned to face the group as they reached the crowd. "It's funny. I've seen Sir Ken do all sorts of dangerous things before, but watching these fire jugglers really makes me nervous."

"Psh, they're experts. They wouldn't be performing here if they were going to mess up. I can't wait to see the ladies!" Sano nudged Kenshin and received a disapproving glare from Kaoru. "Look, there's one of those dancers."

"Ladies and gentlemen, for the final act of tonight I present to you Tokiaki Hana- a fine sword and fan dancer!" The announcer gestured to the side of the stage where a young lady stood. She was dressed in exotic looking clothes, baggy pants that gathered themselves at the ankles, a flowing skirt that touched just above her knees and a tight, shimmering top that wrapped itself around her chest. Her long golden hair was gathered into a curled ponytail atop her head.

The announcer left the stage and slow, sultry music began to play. Tokiaki took his place and began to move along with the music. At first her moves were slow and smooth, using her fan as a prop, but as the music's tempo increased so did her moves. Twists, kicks and acrobatics were highlighted throughout the dance. The addition of swords made the dance look even more spectacular. She would toss them and spin them without breaking a step.

To one end of the stage a small child had climbed on, though it appeared as though Tokiaki had not noticed. The music was reaching its highest intensity signaling the end of her dance. She threw her sword above her and proceeded to do a one-footed spin with increasing speed. The crowd watched as the sword went up, but as it came down the child was standing under where the sword would land.

Stopping her spin, Tokiaki jumped forwards to cover the child from the falling sword earning herself a long gash down her arm and ruining her finale. The crowd breathed a sigh of relief for the child's safety and let out a round of cheering and applause. Tokiaki walked the child to their parents and bowed before leaving the stage while clutching her bleeding arm.

The announcer returned to say a few more words before the crowd dissipated.

"That dancer was _amazing_." Yahiko stated. "The way that she used those swords was awesome, and she even saved that little kid from getting hurt."

"If it's alright with you guys I'd like to check up on her." Megumi looked around, "I don't know if there are any doctors here for the performers and that cut shouldn't be left untreated."

Everyone nodded and they headed for the performers' tents. They weaved through the tents until Kaoru stopped them. "Guys, shush."

They could see Tokiaki and a tall man talking to each other, her arm still dripping blood. "I don't want to hear your excuses! You ruined the show with that move at the end!" The man yelled at Tokiaki.

"But, sir, I was just-" The man struck her face with his palm knocking her to the ground.

"I. Don't. Care. You do as _I_ say. I helped you after your parents were killed. You wouldn't want something _happening_ to you, would you?" He moved closer and loomed over her. He connected his foot with the side of her ribs.

"Hey you!" Kaoru moved from her hiding spot. "You can't just do something like that! All she did was save a little kid from getting seriously hurt from the sword."

"Do you think I care? Who are you anyways? I own this group and it's up to me what happens if my performers mess up."

Kenshin stepped forward at this point, withdrawing his sword and holding it at his side. "I think that it might be best for you to just let Miss Tokiaki go."

"Heh, you think that I'm intimidated by your sword? Whatever, if she wants to leave here, she can. It's not like she has anywhere to go." The man turned and walked away, giving Tokiaki one more hard kick to the face.


End file.
